Methods, systems, and media for processing queries relating to presented media content

ABSTRACT

Methods, systems, and media for processing queries relating to presented media content are provided. In some implementations, a method comprises: receiving a request to associate with a media playback device that is presenting media content to a user of the mobile device, wherein a mobile application executing on the mobile device and a media application executing on the media playback device exchange media playback information; activating a microphone associated with the mobile device to receive ambient sounds in response to associating with the media playback device; converting the received ambient sounds to one or more text inputs; determining whether the text inputs include a trigger term that corresponds to a request to initiate a query relating to the presented media content and the query; in response to determining that the trigger term has been included in the text inputs, determining the media playback information from the media application that includes timing information corresponding to when during the presentation of the media content the query was received and media content identification information; causing a search to be performed that includes the query, the timing information, and the media content identification information; obtaining a search result that is responsive to the query; and presenting at least a portion of the search result to the query on a mobile display associated with the mobile device.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/686,428, filed Apr. 14, 2015, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The disclosed subject matter relates to methods, systems, and media forprocessing queries relating to presented media content.

BACKGROUND

While watching a television program, a viewer is often interested ininformation relating to the television program. For example, the viewermay want to search for additional information about an actor seen in amovie or about locations that are shown in a documentary.

Search engines allow the viewer to search on the Internet for resources,which may include webpages, images, video content, and audio content. Atypical search engine provides a web page for entering search terms,where the search terms are inputted by the viewer. Search resultsresponsive to particular search terms are provided to the viewer.Moreover, with the advent of mobile devices, the use of mobile searchengines has increased. For example, using a mobile device, the viewermay perform a search and browse through Internet content while watchingthe television program.

In an example where the user wants to learn the name of a particularactor in a movie and obtain additional information about the particularactor, the user may attempt to obtain this information by finding thename of the movie (e.g., from a program guide, from an online televisionguidance website, from a printed guide, etc.) and searching for themovie by inputting it into a mobile search engine. The user then clicksthrough search results to find a webpage containing information relatingto the movie (e.g., an online website containing information relating tomovies and television programs), accesses the webpage, and searchesthrough the webpage to find information relating to the particularactor. If the user is able to find the actor on the webpage, the useraccesses another page on the website relating to the particular actorand scans through this page to find the desired information about theparticular actor. This is a time consuming procedure for the user.Moreover, this may cause the user to miss a substantial portion of thetelevision program or to pause the television program to obtain suchinformation via this procedure.

Accordingly, it is desirable to provide new methods, systems, and mediafor processing queries relating to presented media content.

SUMMARY

In accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter,methods, systems, and media for processing queries relating to presentedmedia content are provided.

In some implementations, a method for providing media guidance isprovided, the method comprising: receiving, from a mobile device, arequest to associate with a media playback device that is presentingmedia content to a user of the mobile device, wherein a mobileapplication executing on the mobile device and a media applicationexecuting on the media playback device exchange media playbackinformation; activating a microphone associated with the mobile deviceto receive ambient sounds in response to associating with the mediaplayback device; converting the received ambient sounds to one or moretext inputs; determining whether the text inputs include a trigger termthat corresponds to a request to initiate a query relating to thepresented media content and the query; in response to determining thatthe trigger term has been included in the text inputs, determining themedia playback information from the media application that includestiming information corresponding to when during the presentation of themedia content the query was received and media content identificationinformation; causing a search to be performed that includes the query,the timing information, and the media content identificationinformation; obtaining a search result that is responsive to the query;and presenting at least a portion of the search result to the query on amobile display associated with the mobile device.

In some implementations, a system for providing media guidance isprovided, the system comprising a hardware processor that is configuredto: receive a request to associate with a media playback device that ispresenting media content to a user of a mobile device, wherein a mobileapplication executing on the mobile device and a media applicationexecuting on the media playback device exchange media playbackinformation; activate a microphone associated with the mobile device toreceive ambient sounds in response to associating with the mediaplayback device; convert the received ambient sounds to one or more textinputs; determine whether the text inputs include a trigger term thatcorresponds to a request to initiate a query relating to the presentedmedia content and the query; in response to determining that the triggerterm has been included in the text inputs, determine the media playbackinformation from the media application that includes timing informationcorresponding to when during the presentation of the media content thequery was received and media content identification information; cause asearch to be performed that includes the query, the timing information,and the media content identification information; obtain a search resultthat is responsive to the query; and present at least a portion of thesearch result to the query on a mobile display associated with themobile device.

In some implementations, a non-transitory computer-readable mediumcontaining computer executable instructions that, when executed by aprocessor, cause the processor to perform method for providing mediaguidance is provided. The method comprises: receiving a request toassociate with a media playback device that is presenting media contentto a user of the mobile device, wherein a mobile application executingon the mobile device and a media application executing on the mediaplayback device exchange media playback information; activating amicrophone associated with the mobile device to receive ambient soundsin response to associating with the media playback device; convertingthe received ambient sounds to one or more text inputs; determiningwhether the text inputs include a trigger term that corresponds to arequest to initiate a query relating to the presented media content andthe query; in response to determining that the trigger term has beenincluded in the text inputs, determining the media playback informationfrom the media application that includes timing informationcorresponding to when during the presentation of the media content thequery was received and media content identification information; causinga search to be performed that includes the query, the timinginformation, and the media content identification information; obtaininga search result that is responsive to the query; and presenting at leasta portion of the search result to the query on a mobile displayassociated with the mobile device.

In some implementations, a system for providing media guidance isprovided, the system comprising: means for receiving a request toassociate with a media playback device that is presenting media contentto a user of the mobile device, wherein a mobile application executingon the mobile device and a media application executing on the mediaplayback device exchange media playback information; means foractivating a microphone associated with the mobile device to receiveambient sounds in response to associating with the media playbackdevice; means for converting the received ambient sounds to one or moretext inputs; means for determining whether the text inputs include atrigger term that corresponds to a request to initiate a query relatingto the presented media content and the query; in response to determiningthat the trigger term has been included in the text inputs, means fordetermining the media playback information from the media applicationthat includes timing information corresponding to when during thepresentation of the media content the query was received and mediacontent identification information; means for causing a search to beperformed that includes the query, the timing information, and the mediacontent identification information; means for obtaining a search resultthat is responsive to the query; and means for presenting at least aportion of the search result to the query on a mobile display associatedwith the mobile device.

In some implementations, the system further comprises: means fordetermining whether the microphone associated with the mobile device iscapable of receiving the ambient sounds; and means for activating anaudio capturing device associated with the media playback device inresponse to determining that the microphone associated with the mobiledevice is not capable of receiving the ambient sounds.

In some implementations, the system further comprises means forprocessing the ambient sounds using a speech recognition system.

In some implementations, the system further comprises: means forrequesting additional media playback information from the mediaapplication executing on the media playback device; and means fortransmitting the query, the media playback information, and theadditional media playback information to a search system to receive thesearch result.

In some implementations, the system further comprises means fordetermining whether the search result is to be presented on the mobiledisplay associated with the mobile device; and means for presenting thesearch result on a display associated with the media playback device inresponse to determining that the search result is not to be presented onthe mobile display associated with the mobile device. In someimplementations, the search result is determined to be presented on themobile device based on search popularity information associated with thesearch result.

In some implementations, the system further comprises: means forretrieving media playback information prior to receiving the query; andmeans for associating the media playback information with the query inresponse to receiving the trigger term.

In some implementations, the system further comprises: means forreceiving requests from a plurality of mobile devices to associate withthe media playback device that is presenting the media content; meansfor activating audio capturing devices associated with at least aportion of the plurality of mobile devices and the media playback deviceto receive ambient sounds from users proximate to the plurality ofmobile devices and the media playback device; means for determining thata plurality of queries have been received based on the received ambientsounds, wherein each of the plurality of queries includes the triggerterm and the query relating to the presented media content; means forobtaining a plurality of search results, wherein each of the pluralityof search results is responsive to one of the plurality of queries; andmeans for causing the plurality of search results to be presented.

In some implementations, the system further comprises: means forassociating a search result of the plurality of search results with therespective mobile device from which the ambient sounds including thequery was received; and means for causing the at least a portion of thesearch result to be presented on the respective mobile device.

In some implementations, the system further comprises means for causingeach of the plurality of search results to be presented on a displayassociated with the media playback device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various objects, features, and advantages of the disclosed subjectmatter can be more fully appreciated with reference to the followingdetailed description of the disclosed subject matter when considered inconnection with the following drawings, in which like reference numeralsidentify like elements.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of an illustrative system suitable forimplementation of mechanisms described herein for processing queriesrelating to presented media content in accordance with someimplementations of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 2 shows a detailed example of hardware that can be used in aserver, a media playback device, and/or a user device of FIG. 1 inaccordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 3 shows an illustrative example of a process for processing queriesrelating to presented media content in accordance with someimplementations of the disclosed subject matter.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show examples of mobile device interfaces for receiving aquery on a mobile device that relates to media content being presentedon a media playback device in accordance with some implementations ofthe disclosed subject matter.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show examples of mobile device interfaces for processing aquery relating to media content being presented on a media playbackdevice in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subjectmatter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter,mechanisms (which can include methods, systems and media) for processingqueries relating to presented media content are provided.

In some implementations, these mechanisms can associate a mobile devicewith a media playback device that is presenting media content and, inresponse to detecting a query relating to the media content beingpresented by the media playback device, present an answer responsive tothe search query. For example, a microphone or any other suitable audiocapturing device can be activated on the mobile device and, in responseto capturing a voice input that includes a search initiation keywordfollowed by a search query, the search query and media playbackinformation (e.g., a media content identifier, a timestamp of when thesearch query was received during the playback of the media content,etc.) can be transmitted to a search server. In another example,information associated with the mobile device (e.g., locationinformation, media identification information, etc.) can also betransmitted to the search server. The response from the search servercan be used to present an answer that is responsive to the search queryon the mobile device. For example, the answer can be presented in theform of a notification on the display of the mobile device. In anotherexample, additionally or alternatively to presenting a mobile devicenotification, the answer can be presented in the form of a notificationon the display of the media playback device that is presenting the mediacontent.

In some implementations, the mechanisms can be implemented with multiplemobile devices that are associated with a media playback device. Forexample, when multiple mobile devices are present on a network that iscommon to the media playback device, the mechanisms can activatemultiple microphones on different devices for receiving search queries.In this example, the mechanisms can present an answer responsive to thereceived search query to the device having the microphone that receivedthe search query. Additionally or alternatively, the mechanisms candetermine which device is suited to present the answer, such as on adisplay of the mobile device that received the search request, on adisplay of the mobile device closest in proximity to the user thatuttered the search query, on displays of multiple mobile devices thatare within a particular range of the mobile device that received thesearch request, and/or on a display of the media playback device so thatusers viewing the media content can review the answer to the searchquery.

In some implementations, upon detecting the presence of multiple audiocapturing devices, the mechanisms can determine which audio capturingdevice to activate for receiving ambient sounds and detecting whether asearch query has been received. For example, based on audio capturingcapabilities, the mechanisms can determine whether to activate amicrophone associated with the media playback device, a microphone of afirst mobile device that is associated with the media playback device, amicrophone associated with a second mobile device that is alsoassociated with the media playback device, or any suitable combinationthereof. In some implementations, upon detecting the presence ofmultiple audio capturing devices, the mechanisms can access preferenceinformation of each device associated with an audio capturing device anddetermine whether the device provides affirmative authorization todetect search queries using the audio capturing device.

These and other features are further described in connection with FIGS.1-7.

FIG. 1 shows an example 100 of a generalized schematic diagram of asystem on which the mechanisms for processing queries relating topresented media content as described herein can be implemented inaccordance with some implementations. As illustrated, system 100 caninclude one or more user devices 102. User devices 102 can be local toeach other or remote from each other. User devices 102 can be connectedby one or more communications links 104 to a communication network 106that can be linked to a server 120 via a communications link 112.

System 100 can include one or more media playback devices 110. Mediaplayback devices 110 can be local to each other or remote from eachother. Media playback devices 110 can be connected by one or morecommunications links 108 to communication network 106 that can be linkedto server 120 via communications link 112 and/or user devices 102 viacommunications link 104.

System 100 can include one or more servers 120. Server 120 can be anysuitable server or servers for providing access to the mechanismsdescribed herein for processing queries relating to presented mediacontent, such as a processor, a computer, a data processing device, orany suitable combination of such devices. For example, the mechanismsfor associating multiple devices with a media playback device can bedistributed into multiple backend components and multiple frontendcomponents and/or user interfaces. In a more particular example, backendcomponents, such as mechanisms for receiving requests to associatemobile devices and/or mobile device accounts with a media playbackdevice, requests identifying mobile devices on a common network with aparticular media playback device, requests to present media content,etc., can be performed on one or more servers 120. In another particularexample, frontend components, such as presentation of media content,presentation of answers to search queries, requesting media content tobe presented, identifying user devices that are present, causing a userdevice to be associated with a media playback device, etc., can beperformed on one or more user devices 102 and/or media playback device110.

In some implementations, each of user devices 102, media playback device110 and server 120 can be any of a general purpose device such as acomputer or a special purpose device such as a client, a server, etc.Any of these general or special purpose devices can include any suitablecomponents such as a hardware processor (which can be a microprocessor,digital signal processor, a controller, etc.), memory, communicationinterfaces, display controllers, input devices, etc. For example, userdevice 102 can be implemented as a smartphone, a tablet computer, awearable computer, a laptop computer, a portable game console, any othersuitable computing device, or any suitable combination thereof. Asanother example, media playback device 110 can be implemented as adigital media receiver, a media streaming device, a game console, aset-top box, a television, a projector, any other suitable computingdevice, or any suitable combination thereof.

Communications network 106 can be any suitable computer network orcombination of such networks including the Internet, an intranet, awide-area network (WAN), a local-area network (LAN), a wireless network,a Wi-Fi network, a digital subscriber line (DSL) network, a frame relaynetwork, an asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) network, a virtual privatenetwork (VPN), an intranet, one or more peer-to-peer connections, etc.Each of communications links 104, 108, and 112 can be any communicationslinks suitable for communicating data among user devices 102, mediaplayback device 110 and server 120, such as network links, dial-uplinks, wireless links, hard-wired links, any other suitablecommunications links, or any suitable combination of such links. Notethat, in some implementations, multiple servers 120 can be used toprovide access to different mechanisms associated with the mechanismsdescribed herein for processing queries relating to presented mediacontent. For example, system 100 can include a user preferences server120 that stores user preferences associated with one or more usersand/or one or more user devices 102, a user preferences database server120 that maintains one or more databases of correspondence between usersand/or user devices 102 with which a particular media playback device110 is associated, and a content delivery server 120 that determineswhich content to cause to be presented by the particular media playbackdevice 110 based on the user preferences of users and/or user devices102 associated with media playback device 110, and/or any other suitableservers for performing any suitable functions of the mechanismsdescribed herein.

In some implementations, user device 102 can be associated with audiocapturing device 130. Audio capturing device 130 can be any suitableaudio input device for receiving audio data, such as ambient sounds,voice commands, etc. Illustrative examples of audio capturing device 130include a microphone coupled to user device 102. For example, in someimplementations, audio capturing device 130 can be integrated with orconnected to user device 102. In another example, in someimplementations, audio capturing device 130 can include an externalmicrophone (e.g., a microphone in an accessory such as a wired orwireless headset).

In some implementations, media playback device 110 can be associatedwith audio capturing device 140. Audio capturing device 140 can be anysuitable audio input device for receiving audio data, such as ambientsounds, voice commands, etc. Illustrative examples of audio capturingdevice 140 include a microphone coupled to media playback device 110.For example, in some implementations, audio capturing device 140 can beintegrated with or connected to media playback device 110. In anotherexample, in some implementations, audio capturing device 140 can includean external microphone.

In some implementations, media playback device 110 can be associatedwith device identifying information. Device identifying information canidentify a user of media playback device 110 and/or can identify mediaplayback device 110. For example, in some implementations, deviceidentifying information can be a token or other data associated with auser of media playback device 110. For example, the token or other datacan identify a user associated with a particular user account of aproduct and/or service. In a more particular example, such a token orother information can include a string of characters (which can be, forexample, randomly assigned) that is associated with a particular emailaddress that was used as a credential to log in to an application on themedia playback device. As another example, device identifyinginformation can be identifying information of media playback device 110,such as a MAC address, a device ID, a serial number, and/or any othersuitable identifying information of media playback device 110. As yetanother example, device identifying information can be a combination ofidentifying information of a user and identifying information of mediaplayback device 110. In some implementations, device identifyinginformation can include semantically meaningful identifying information,such as a user assigned name (e.g., “Alex's Living Room StreamingDevice”).

In some implementations, device identifying information can include apersistent identifier for media playback device 110 that can be assignedbased on any suitable conditions. For example, a device ID ofpresentation device 110 can be assigned when media playback device 110is initialized and/or reinitialized. In a more particular example,during initialization, media playback device 110 can contact a server torequest a persistent device ID. In some implementations, this device IDcan be assigned by the server such that each media playback device has aunique device ID. Additionally, media playback device 110 can receive adifferent device ID upon media playback device 110 being reset orotherwise reinitialized. In some implementations, such a device ID canbe used to associate user preferences and/or any other suitableinformation (e.g., at a server) with media playback device 110 for lateruse in determining content to be presented using media playback device110.

In some implementations, server 120 can store a device preferencesdatabase 150. Device preferences database 150 can include preferencesassociated with a user of a particular user device 102. For example,such preferences can include whether a user of a particular user device102 has provided affirmative authorization to access an associated audiocapturing device (e.g., turning a microphone on and off). Additionallyor alternatively, in some implementations, device preferences database150 can include information identifying which users are associated withwhich audio capturing device. In some implementations, information indevice preferences database 150 can be organized using any suitabletechnique or combination of techniques. For example, device preferencesdatabase 150 can be organized as a relational database.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example 200 of hardware that can be used toimplement one or more of user devices 102, media playback device 110,and servers 120 depicted in FIG. 1 in accordance with someimplementations of the disclosed subject matter. Referring to FIG. 2,user device 102 can include a hardware processor 202, a display/inputdevice 204, memory 206 and a transmitter/receiver 208, which can beinterconnected. In some implementations, memory 206 can include astorage device (such as a computer-readable medium) for storing a userdevice program for controlling hardware processor 202.

Hardware processor 202 can use the computer program to execute and/orinteract with the mechanisms described herein for presenting contentbased on user preferences of multiple users in the presence of a mediapresentation device, controlling presentation of the content on thepresentation device, disassociating user preferences from thepresentation device, setting user preferences, etc. In someimplementations, the user device program can cause hardware processor202 to, for example, interact with a media playback device and/or adevice executing at least a portion of process 300 as described below inconnection with FIG. 3. In some implementations, hardware processor 202can send and receive data through communications link 104 or any othercommunication links using, for example, a transmitter, a receiver, atransmitter/receiver, a transceiver, or any other suitable communicationdevice, such as transmitter/receiver 208. Display/input device 204 caninclude a touchscreen, a flat panel display, a cathode ray tube display,a projector, a speaker or speakers, and/or any other suitable displayand/or presentation devices, and/or can include a computer keyboard, acomputer mouse, one or more physical buttons, a microphone, a touchpad,a voice recognition circuit, a touch interface of a touchscreen, acamera, a motion sensor such as an optical motion sensor and/or anaccelerometer, a temperature sensor, a near field communication sensor,a biometric data sensor, and/or any other suitable input device.Transmitter/receiver 108 can include any suitable transmitter and/orreceiver for transmitting and/or receiving, among other things,instructions for presenting content, instructions for setting userpreferences, instructions for associating user preferences with apresentation device, etc., and can include any suitable hardware,firmware and/or software for interfacing with one or more communicationnetworks, such as network 106 shown in FIG. 1. For example,transmitter/receiver 208 can include network interface card circuitry,wireless communication circuitry, and/or any other suitable type ofcommunication network circuitry, one or more antennas, and/or any othersuitable hardware, firmware and/or software for transmitting and/orreceiving signals.

Media playback device 110 can include a hardware processor 212, adisplay/input device 214, memory 216 and a transmitter/receiver 218,which can be interconnected. In some implementations, memory 216 caninclude a storage device (such as a computer-readable medium) forstoring a presentation device program for controlling hardware processor212.

Hardware processor 212 can use the presentation device program toexecute and/or interact with the mechanisms described herein forpresenting content based on user preferences of multiple users in thepresence of a media presentation device, requesting content to presentbased on user preferences of associated users, request and/or transmitpresentation device identifying information 140, etc. In someimplementations, the presentation device program can cause hardwareprocessor 212 to, for example, interact with a device executing at leasta portion of process 300 as described below in connection with FIG. 3.In some implementations, hardware processor 212 can send and receivedata through communications link 108 or any other communication linksusing, for example, a transmitter, a receiver, a transmitter/receiver, atransceiver, or any other suitable communication device, such astransmitter/receiver 218. Display/input device 214 can include atouchscreen, a flat panel display, a cathode ray tube display, aprojector, a speaker or speakers, and/or any other suitable displayand/or presentation devices, and/or can include a computer keyboard, acomputer mouse, one or more physical buttons, a microphone, a touchpad,a voice recognition circuit, a touch interface of a touchscreen, acamera, a motion sensor such as an optical motion sensor and/or anaccelerometer, a temperature sensor, a near field communication sensor,a biometric data sensor, and/or any other suitable input device.Transmitter/receiver 218 can include any suitable transmitter and/orreceiver for transmitting and/or receiving, among other things, requestsfor content to be presented, content to be presented, signals todetermine whether one or more user devices 102 are present, etc., andcan include any suitable hardware, firmware and/or software forinterfacing with one or more communication networks, such as network 106shown in FIG. 2. For example, transmitter/receiver 218 can includenetwork interface card circuitry, wireless communication circuitry,and/or any other suitable type of communication network circuitry, oneor more antennas, and/or any other suitable hardware, firmware and/orsoftware for transmitting and/or receiving signals.

Server 120 can include a hardware processor 222, a display/input device224, memory 226 and a transmitter/receiver 228, which can beinterconnected. In some implementations, memory 228 can include astorage device for storing data received through communications link 112or through other links. The storage device can further include a serverprogram for controlling hardware processor 222. In some implementations,memory 228 can include information stored as a result of user activityand/or activity by a media playback device (e.g., device identifyinginformation, content to be presented, requests for content to bepresented, query information, etc.). In some implementations, the serverprogram can cause hardware processor 222 to, for example, execute atleast a portion of process 300 as described below in connection withFIG. 3.

Hardware processor 222 can use the server program to communicate withuser devices 102 and/or presentation device 110 as well as provideaccess to and/or copies of the mechanisms described herein. It shouldalso be noted that data received through communications link 112 or anyother communications links can be received from any suitable source. Insome implementations, hardware processor 222 can send and receive datathrough communications link 112 or any other communication links using,for example, a transmitter, a receiver, a transmitter/receiver, atransceiver, or any other suitable communication device, such astransmitter/receiver 228. In some implementations, hardware processor222 can receive commands and/or values transmitted by one or more userdevices 102, media playback device 110, one or more other servers 120,and/or one or more users of server 120, such as a user that makeschanges to adjust settings associated with the mechanisms describedherein for associating multiple users with a media presentation device.Display 224 can include a touchscreen, a flat panel display, a cathoderay tube display, a projector, a speaker or speakers, and/or any othersuitable display and/or presentation devices, and/or can include acomputer keyboard, a computer mouse, one or more physical buttons, amicrophone, a touchpad, a voice recognition circuit, a touch interfaceof a touchscreen, a camera, a motion sensor such as an optical motionsensor and/or an accelerometer, a temperature sensor, a near fieldcommunication sensor, a biometric data sensor, and/or any other suitableinput device. Transmitter/receiver 228 can include any suitabletransmitter and/or receiver for transmitting and/or receiving, amongother things, content to be presented, requests for content, searchqueries, etc., and can include any suitable hardware, firmware and/orsoftware for interfacing with one or more communication networks, suchas network 106 shown in FIG. 2. For example, transmitter/receiver 228can include network interface card circuitry, wireless communicationcircuitry, and/or any other suitable type of communication networkcircuitry, one or more antennas, and/or any other suitable hardware,firmware and/or software for transmitting and/or receiving signals.

In some implementations, server 120 can be implemented in one server orcan be distributed as any suitable number of servers. For example,multiple servers 120 can be implemented in various locations to increasereliability and/or increase the speed at which the server cancommunicate with user devices 102 and/or presentation device 110.Additionally or alternatively, as described above in connection withFIG. 1, multiple servers 120 can be implemented to perform differenttasks associated with the mechanisms described herein.

FIG. 3 shows an example 300 of a process for processing queries relatingto media content in the presence of a media playback device inaccordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter. Asshown in FIG. 3, process 300 can begin, at 310, by receiving a requestto present media content. For example, a request to present mediacontent on a media playback device can be received from a mobile deviceassociated with or connected to the media playback device. It should benoted that the request can be received using any suitable technique orcombination of techniques and can be received from any suitable source,such as the media playback device on which the media content is to bepresented and/or a mobile device associated with the media playbackdevice. For example, a request to stream a program from an on-demandcontent source and display the program on a media playback device can bereceived from a mobile device having an application, such as a remotecontrol application, that allows the mobile device to control the mediaplayback device. In another example, a media playback device can beginpresenting media content from any suitable content source prior to thepresence of users having mobile devices associating with the mediaplayback device.

At 320, process 300 can receive, from a mobile device, a request toassociate with a media playback device. For example, a mobileapplication executing on the mobile device can communicate with a mediaapplication executing on the media playback device, where commands andmedia playback information can be exchanged between the applications andwhere status information can be synchronized. Continuing the example in310, the mobile application executing on the mobile device can be aremote control application that communicates with a media applicationexecuting on the media playback device. The remote control applicationcan transmit commands from a user interface displayed on the mobiledevice to the media application executing on the media playback device.

At 330, one or more mobile devices can be associated with the mediaplayback device. For example, multiple mobile devices 102 executingremote control applications or other suitable mobile applications cantransmit requests for association to media playback device 110. Inanother example, multiple mobile devices 102 can transmit a signal orrequest to server 120 identifying itself as in the presence of mediaplayback device 110. In a more particular example, a remote controlapplication or other suitable application executing on mobile device 102can present a user interface indicating that mobile device 102 has beenassociated with the media playback device (e.g., Alex's Living RoomStreaming Device).

Additionally or alternatively, in some implementations, process 300 canreceive identifying information of mobile devices as being present bythe requesting device (e.g., the device from which the request forcontent is received at 310) and/or any other suitable device. In someimplementations, any suitable technique or combination of techniques canbe used to detect the presence of a particular mobile device. Forexample, media playback device 110 can detect mobile devices that areconnected to a same local network as media playback device 110 (e.g., aLAN including a Wi-Fi network). As another example, media playbackdevice 110 can broadcast and/or unicast one or more messages targetingnearby mobile devices 102 using any suitable communication techniques,such as peer-to-peer communication techniques. In a more particularexample, media playback device 110 can use transmitter/receiver 218 totransmit one or more signals (e.g., using any suitable communicationstandard such as Bluetooth, wireless USB, etc.) to any nearby mobiledevices 102 which can, in some cases, receive the signal usingtransmitter/receiver 208 and respond with a message indicating that theuser device is present. In another more particular example, mediaplayback 110 can use a speaker to emit a signal as sound waves, whichcan be outside the range of human hearing, to any nearby mobile devices102 which can, in some cases, receive the signal using a microphone andrespond with a message indicating that the mobile device is present.

At 340, in some implementations, a microphone or other suitable audiocapturing device can be activated on a mobile device to receive ambientsounds in the environment of the media playback device (e.g., in aliving room environment).

In some implementations where multiple devices each having acorresponding audio capturing device are associated with the mediaplayback device, process 300 can determine which of the audio capturingdevices to activate. For example, the microphones associated with eachof the media playback devices can be positioned within the environmentin which the media content is being presented to receive and/or recordambient sounds in the environment. Process 300 can determine particularmicrophones to activate based on user preferences, audio capabilities,the results of a transmitted audio capturing test, device historyinformation indicating which devices have previously received queriesrelating to media content, etc. For example, an audio capturing testthat requests the user speak into a microphone associated with a mobiledevice can be transmitted, where microphones that have greater signalstrength are selected for activation. In another example, an audiocapturing test that causes a speaker on one mobile device to transmit asound that is detected by a microphone of another mobile device can beused to test the configuration or capabilities of the microphone. In yetanother example, upon having multiple mobile devices that each have amicrophone, process 300 can activate microphones on those mobile devicesbased on user-configured settings or preferences (e.g., an authorizationto use the microphone for detecting trigger terms or search initiatingkeywords, query phrases, etc.).

It should be noted that, prior to activating an audio capturing deviceto receive ambient sounds or any other audio data, process 300 canprovide the user with an opportunity to provide a consent orauthorization to perform actions, such as activating an audio inputdevice and transmitting audio data. For example, upon loading anapplication on a mobile device, such as a television device or a mediaplayback device, the application can prompt the user to provideauthorization for activating an audio input device, transmitting audiodata, detecting events in the audio data, and/or rewinding media contentbased on the detected events. In a more particular example, in responseto downloading the application and loading the application on a mediaplayback device or a mobile device, the user can be prompted with amessage that requests (or requires) that the user provide affirmativeconsent prior to performing these actions. Additionally oralternatively, in response to installing the application, the user canbe prompted with a permission message that requests (or requires) thatthe user provide content prior to performing these detections and/ortransmitting information relating to these detections.

Upon activating one or more audio capturing devices, process 300 canreceive ambient sounds and convert the ambient sounds to one or moretext inputs at 350. For example, in response to detecting ambient soundsin an environment with an audio capturing device, the audio signal canbe transmitted to a speech recognition system that converts the detectedambient sounds into one or more text inputs.

In some implementations, process 300 can convert the ambient sounds intoan audio signal (e.g., using the audio input device or a hardwareprocessor). For example, the mobile device can temporarily store theaudio data and/or the audio signal that includes one or more text inputsin a circular buffer (e.g., implemented in volatile memory that will beoverwritten when new audio data or audio signals are received). In amore particular example, the circular buffer can be used to temporarilystore audio data corresponding to a predetermined amount of audio data(e.g., thirty seconds, one minute, ten minutes, thirty minutes, etc.)and the oldest audio data can be continually overwritten with newlyrecorded audio data.

It should be noted that, in some implementations in which the mediacontent is presented using one or more speakers, a component of theaudio signal can correspond to the audio portion of the media contentbeing presented. The component of the audio signal that corresponds tothe media content being presented can, for example, be removed from theaudio data such that the remaining audio data corresponds to the ambientsounds detected in the environment. In another example, the component ofthe audio signal that corresponds to the media content being presentedcan be extracted and used to determine the portion of the media contentthat a query has been received. In a more particular example, thecomponent of the audio signal that corresponds to the media contentbeing presented can be transmitted to a search server or a suitablefingerprint server, where the server compares the portion of the audiosignal to content fingerprints to facilitate media contentidentification.

In response to converting ambient sounds to one or more text inputs,process 300 can determine whether the text inputs include a trigger termthat corresponds to a request to initiate a query relating to thepresented media content and a query phrase at 360. For example, inresponse to receiving the text inputs of “OK Smart TV, how old is thisactor?,” process 300 can determine whether one or more trigger termshave been received to initiate a query. In this example, the text input“OK Smart TV” can be determined to match one or more trigger termsstored on the mobile device for initiating a query relating to presentedmedia content. In a more particular example, process 300 can ignore textinputs from ambient sounds until one or more trigger terms have beenreceived.

It should be noted that multiple trigger terms can be used to initiate aquery relating to presented media content. For example, a particulartrigger term, such as “OK Smart TV” can be accepted to initiate thefirst query relating to presented media content and another triggerterm, such as “OK” can be accepted to initiate subsequent queries. Inanother example, the media playback device and/or the mobile device canpresent a user interface that indicates the trigger term for initiatingone or more queries relating to presented media content—e.g., “Say ‘OKSmart TV’ followed by your question to ask a question about thisprogram”—and, in response to processing the first query and presentingan answer on a suitable device, the media playback device and/or themobile device can present an updated user interface that indicates thetrigger term for initiating a subsequent query—e.g., “Say ‘OK’ followedby your next question.

In a more particular example, FIG. 4 shows an illustrative screen thatincludes an interface that prompts the user with one or more triggerterms or search initiating keywords for initiating a query relating tothe presented media content in accordance with some implementations ofthe disclosed subject matter. As shown, in some implementations, amobile device 410 can present interface 420 that prompts the user tospeak the trigger terms “OK Smart TV” or “Hey TV” to initiate a queryrelating to the media content being presented on a media playbackdevice. In some implementations, interface 420 can be updated toindicate different trigger terms that can be used to initiate asubsequent search (e.g., a follow-up question by one of the users beingpresented with the media content).

Referring back to FIG. 3, in some implementations, process 300 canextract the text inputs following the trigger term as the query phrase.For example, in response to receiving one or more trigger terms, process300 can transmit the remaining audio signal and/or audio data to aspeech recognition system, where the speech recognition system convertsthe query phrase from the audio data into text. Continuing the exampleabove, in response to receiving the trigger term “OK Smart TV,” process300 can present a user interface that states “What's your question?”and, in response to detecting audio data, can transmit the portion ofthe audio data following the trigger term to a speech recognitionsystem, which extracts the text phrase “how old is this actor?” as thequery phrase from the audio data. In some implementations, the queryphrase can include text inputs received within a particular time periodafter the trigger term is received (e.g., ten seconds after receivingthe audio trigger term “OK Smart TV”). Alternatively, in someimplementations, the query phrase can include text inputs that arereceived, where the query phrase includes text inputs that have beenreceived continuously (e.g., no more than one second between receivingeach text input).

In a more particular example, FIG. 5 shows an illustrative screen thatincludes an updated interface indicates that the microphone on themobile device is capturing an audio signal that includes the queryrelating to the presented media content in accordance with someimplementations of the disclosed subject matter. As shown, in someimplementations, mobile device 410 can present interface 510 thatindicates the microphone or other audio capturing device associated withmobile device 410 is capturing the audio signal that includes the queryrelating to the presented media content. In response to receiving theaudio signal and processing the audio signal using a speech recognitionsystem, the mobile device can present an interface that includes thetext query submitted by the user of mobile device 410. For example, FIG.6 shows an illustrative interface 610 that is presented on mobile device410, where interface 610 presents the text query “How old is this guy?”

Referring back to FIG. 3, in some implementations, in response toreceiving one or more trigger terms and a query phrase, process 300 candetermine media playback information associated with the media contentpresented during the receipt of the query at 370. For example, inresponse to receiving one or more trigger terms (e.g., “OK Smart TV”)and a query phrase (e.g., “how old is this actor?”), the mobileapplication executing on the mobile device that received the query canrequest media playback information corresponding to the received queryfrom the media playback application executing on the media playbackdevice. Media playback information can include, for example, timinginformation corresponding to when, during the presentation of the mediacontent, the query was received, media content identificationinformation, etc. In a more particular example, the mobile applicationexecuting on the mobile device that received the query can receive abeginning timestamp in the media content as to when the trigger term wasreceived, an ending timestamp in the media content as to when the lastinput in the query was received, and a content identifier of the mediacontent being presented.

At 380, process 300 can continue by causing a search to be performedthat includes the query phrase, the timing information, and the mediacontent identification information. For example, the mobile deviceand/or the media playback device can transmit the received query phrase,the timing information, and the media content identification informationto a search server. In turn, the search server can generate a searchquery based on the received query phrase, the timing information, andthe media content identification information and perform a search toobtain search results responsive to the search query. Continuing fromthe example above, the search server can construct one or more searchqueries related to the media content based on the receivedinformation—e.g., search for metadata associated with media contentidentified by the media content identification information, search forcontextually relevant metadata relating to the media content for a giventime period, search a search engine database with the query phrase(e.g., “how old is that actor?”) appended to contextually relevantmetadata (e.g., actor name, program title, actor popularity, etc.), etc.Once the relevant search query or queries are generated, the searchquery can be provided to a suitable search engine, which searches one ormore repositories and indexes for results responsive to the searchquery. In some implementations, the search engine can be a generalsearch engine that is accessed by the search module 532 using, forexample, a search application programming interface (API).Alternatively, the search engine can be a search engine used exclusivelyby front-end server 520 or any other component of system 500.

It should be noted that, in some implementations, multiple searchresults can be returned and popularity information can be used todetermine which search result to use in the answer to the submittedquery. For example, in some implementations, in response to receivingmultiple search results to the query “how old is that actor,” popularityinformation can be used to filter through multiple search results. Inanother example, in response to receiving multiple search results,confidence information can be used to filter through multiple searchresults (e.g., if the search result does not have a confidence level ofat least 90% of being the answer to the submitted query, the searchresult is removed from consideration). In this example, upon determiningthat none of the search results have a confidence level greater than aparticular threshold value, an answer to the submitted query may not bepresented.

It should also be noted that, in some implementations, an answer can begenerated for presentation to the user based on the multiple searchresults. For example, an answer, such as “Actor A appearing inTelevision Program B is 45 years old,” can be generated in response toreviewing multiple search results. In another example, an answer can begenerated from the top search result in the list of search results.

At 390, upon obtaining a search result that is responsive to thesubmitted query and determining an answer to the submitted query,process 300 can determine how to present the answer to the user orusers.

In some implementations, a search result from the search server that isresponsive to the query can be presented to the user. For example, inresponse to receiving the query “how old is that actor,” a link to apage responsive to the query can be presented to the user.

In some implementations, an answer that is generated from the searchresult and that is responsive to the query can be presented to the user.For example, FIG. 7 shows an illustrative interface 710, where theanswer “Actor A appearing in Television Program B is 45 years old”followed by a source identifier from the search result is presented inresponse to receiving the query “how old is this guy.” As also shown inFIG. 7, option 720 can be presented that, when selected, can provide theuser of mobile device 410 with additional information relating to thepresented answer (e.g., a link to the source of the answer, a link tothe search results responsive to the query, a page including otherquestions and/or answers that may be of interest to the user based onthe current query, etc.).

In some implementations, the answer or search result responsive to thequery can be presented to the user or users using any suitable approach.

For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the answer is presented in the form ofa notification interface on the mobile device. It should be noted thatthe interface including the answer to the query can be presented on themobile device that received the audio signal including the query. Insome implementations, the interface including the submitted query andthe answer to the query can be presented on all of the mobile devicesthat are currently associated with the media playback device that ispresenting the media content.

Referring back to FIG. 3, in some implementations, process 300 candetermine which of multiple approaches for delivering the submittedquery and the answer to each of the mobile devices associated with themedia playback device that is presenting the media content. For example,for mobile devices associated with the media playback device that didnot provide the query, an interface can be presented on the mobileapplication executing on those mobile devices, where the user of themobile device is presented with the query and the answer in response tolaunching the mobile application. Continuing with this example, for themobile device associated with the media playback device that providedthe query, a notification that alerts the user of the mobile device anddirects the user of the mobile device to the interface that includes thequery and answer can be presented.

It should be noted that, in some implementations, the approach fordelivering the submitted query and the answer to a mobile device can bedetermined by user preferences. For example, a user of a mobile deviceexecuting the mobile application can indicate a preference that queriesand corresponding answers be provided as a notification, provided as analert, compiled for later viewing, etc. In another example, in responseto audio recognition, user authentication, or any other suitableapproach for determining the user of the mobile device, user preferencesfor presenting such answers that are associated with a user accountcorresponding to the user of the mobile device can be retrieved.

It should also be noted that, in some implementations, the submittedquery and the corresponding answer can be presented in a suitableinterface to a user of the mobile device that received the audio signalincluding the query and the user of the mobile device can be providedwith the opportunity to share the answer with users of other mobiledevices that are connected to the media playback device. For example, inaddition to presenting the answer, the interface presented on the mobiledevice can include an option to selectively share the answer with mobiledevices connected to the media playback device (e.g., the user of themobile device selects one or more mobile devices to receive thesubmitted query and the corresponding answer, the user of the mobiledevice shares the submitted query and the corresponding answer to all ofthe mobile devices connected to the media playback device).

Additionally or alternatively, in some implementations, an interfacethat includes the submitted query and the corresponding answer can bepresented on the media playback device. For example, while the mediacontent is currently being presented, a notification window that doesnot obstruct the presentation of the media content can be presented thatincludes the query and the answer. In a more particular example, upondetermining the mobile device that provided the query, a notificationwindow that includes the answer to the query can be presented on a sideof a window presenting the media content that corresponds to theposition of the mobile device (e.g., a notification window on theleftmost portion of a video window presenting the media content inresponse to determining that the mobile device or audio capturing devicethat received the query is located on the left portion of the livingroom environment.

It should be noted that, in some implementations, a user of a mobiledevice can be provided with the opportunity to share the submitted queryand the corresponding answer with users consuming the media content. Forexample, the interface presented on the mobile device that includes thesubmitted query and the corresponding answer can also include an optionto present the submitted query and the corresponding answer on the mediaplayback device that is presenting the media content.

In some implementations, at least some of the above described blocks ofthe process of FIG. 3 can be executed or performed in any order orsequence not limited to the order and sequence shown in and described inconnection with the figures. Also, some of the above blocks of FIG. 3can be executed or performed substantially simultaneously whereappropriate or in parallel to reduce latency and processing times.Additionally or alternatively, some of the above described blocks of theprocess of FIG. 3 can be omitted.

In some implementations, the mechanisms described herein can includesoftware, firmware, hardware, or any suitable combination thereof. Forexample, the mechanisms described herein can encompass a computerprogram written in a programming language recognizable by one or more ofhardware processors 202, 212 and 222 (e.g., a program written in aprogramming language, such as, Java, C, Objective-C, C++, C #,Javascript, Visual Basic, or any other suitable approaches). As anotherexample, the mechanisms described herein can encompass codecorresponding to one or more Web pages or Web page portions (e.g., viaany suitable encoding, such as Hyper Text Markup Language (“HTML”),Dynamic Hyper Text Markup Language (“DHTML”), Extensible Markup Language(“XML”), JavaServer Pages (“JSP”), Active Server Pages (“ASP”), ColdFusion, or any other suitable approaches).

In some implementations, any suitable computer readable media can beused for storing instructions for performing the functions and/orprocesses herein. For example, in some implementations, computerreadable media can be transitory or non-transitory. For example,non-transitory computer readable media can include media such asmagnetic media (such as hard disks, floppy disks, and/or any othersuitable magnetic media), optical media (such as compact discs, digitalvideo discs, Blu-ray discs, and/or any other suitable optical media),semiconductor media (such as flash memory, electrically programmableread-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-onlymemory (EEPROM), and/or any other suitable semiconductor media), anysuitable media that is not fleeting or devoid of any semblance ofpermanence during transmission, and/or any suitable tangible media. Asanother example, transitory computer readable media can include signalson networks, in wires, conductors, optical fibers, circuits, anysuitable media that is fleeting and devoid of any semblance ofpermanence during transmission, and/or any suitable intangible media.

In situations in which the systems described herein collect personalinformation about users, or make use of personal information, the usersmay be provided with an opportunity to control whether programs orfeatures collect user information (e.g., information about a user'ssocial network, social actions or activities, profession, a user'spreferences, or a user's current location). In addition, certain datamay be treated in one or more ways before it is stored or used, so thatpersonal information is removed. For example, a user's identity may betreated so that no personally identifiable information can be determinedfor the user, or a user's geographic location may be generalized wherelocation information is obtained (such as to a city, ZIP code, or statelevel), so that a particular location of a user cannot be determined.Thus, the user may have control over how information is collected aboutthe user and used by a content server.

Accordingly, methods, systems, and media for processing queries relatingto presented media content presenting content based on user preferencesof multiple users in the presence of a media presentation device areprovided.

Although the invention has been described and illustrated in theforegoing illustrative implementations, it is understood that thepresent disclosure has been made only by way of example, and thatnumerous changes in the details of implementation of the invention canbe made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention,which is limited only by the claims that follow. Features of thedisclosed implementations can be combined and rearranged in variousways.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for providing media guidance, the methodcomprising: receiving, using a computing device, a plurality of inputterms; determining whether the plurality of input terms include a queryand a trigger term that corresponds to a request to initiate the queryrelating to media content being presented; in response to determiningthat the trigger term has been included in the plurality of input terms,determining media playback information that includes timing informationcorresponding to a time at which the query was received during thepresentation of the media content and media content identificationinformation, wherein the timing information comprises a first timestampcorresponding to a time at which the trigger term was received and asecond timestamp corresponding to a time at which a last term in thequery was received; causing a search to be performed that includes thequery, the timing information, and the media content identificationinformation, wherein the query includes at least a portion of theplurality of input terms other than the trigger term; obtaining a searchresult that is responsive to the query; and presenting at least aportion of the search result to the query on a display associated withthe computing device.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least aportion of the search result is determined to be presented on thedisplay of the computing device based on search popularity informationassociated with the search result.
 3. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: retrieving the media playback information prior to receivingthe query; and associating the media playback information with the queryin response to receiving the trigger term.
 4. The method of claim 1,further comprising: receiving a request to associate with a mediaplayback device, wherein the media playback device is presenting mediacontent and wherein the media playback device is executing a mediaapplication that exchanges the media playback information with a mobileapplication executing on the computing device; associating the computingdevice with the media playback device; and activating an audio inputdevice associated with the computing device to receive ambient sounds inresponse to associating with the media playback device, wherein thereceived ambient sounds are converted to the plurality of input terms.5. The method of claim 4, further comprising: determining whether theaudio input device associated with the computing device is capable ofreceiving the ambient sounds; and activating an audio capturing deviceassociated with the media playback device in response to determiningthat the audio input device associated with the computing device is notcapable of receiving the ambient sounds.
 6. The method of claim 4,further comprising extracting the trigger term and the query from theplurality of input terms comprises processing the ambient sounds using aspeech recognition system.
 7. The method of claim 4, further comprising:requesting additional media playback information from the mediaapplication executing on the media playback device; and transmitting thequery, the media playback information, and the additional media playbackinformation to a search system to receive the search result.
 8. Themethod of claim 4, further comprising: determining whether the searchresult is to be presented on the display associated with the computingdevice; and presenting at least a second portion of the search result ona display associated with the media playback device in response todetermining that the at least the second portion of the search result isnot to be presented on the display associated with the computing device.9. The method of claim 4, further comprising: receiving requests from aplurality of computing devices to associate with the media playbackdevice that is presenting the media content; activating audio capturingdevices associated with at least a portion of the plurality of computingdevices and the media playback device to receive ambient sounds fromusers proximate to the plurality of computing devices and the mediaplayback device; determining that a plurality of queries have beenreceived based on the received ambient sounds, wherein each of theplurality of queries includes the trigger term and the query relating tothe presented media content; obtaining a plurality of search results,wherein each of the plurality of search results is responsive to one ofthe plurality of queries; and causing the plurality of search results tobe presented.
 10. The method of claim 9, further comprising: associatingat least one search result of the plurality of search results with therespective computing device from which the ambient sounds including thequery was received; and causing at least a portion of the search resultto be presented on the respective computing device.
 11. A system forproviding media guidance, the system comprising: a hardware processorthat is configured to: receive a plurality of input terms; determinewhether the plurality of input terms include a query and a trigger termthat corresponds to a request to initiate the query relating to mediacontent being presented; in response to determining that the triggerterm has been included in the plurality of input terms, determine mediaplayback information that includes timing information corresponding to atime at which the query was received during the presentation of themedia content and media content identification information, wherein thetiming information comprises a first timestamp corresponding to a timeat which the trigger term was received and a second timestampcorresponding to a time at which a last term in the query was received;cause a search to be performed that includes the query, the timinginformation, and the media content identification information, whereinthe query includes at least a portion of the plurality of input termsother than the trigger term; obtain a search result that is responsiveto the query; and present at least a portion of the search result to thequery on a display associated with the computing device.
 12. The systemof claim 11, wherein the at least a portion of the search result isdetermined to be presented on the display of the computing device basedon search popularity information associated with the search result. 13.The system of claim 11, wherein the hardware processor is furtherconfigured to: retrieve the media playback information prior toreceiving the query; and associate the media playback information withthe query in response to receiving the trigger term.
 14. The system ofclaim 11, wherein the hardware processor is further configured to:receive a request to associate with a media playback device, wherein themedia playback device is presenting media content and wherein the mediaplayback device is executing a media application that exchanges themedia playback information with a mobile application executing on thecomputing device; associate the computing device with the media playbackdevice; and activate an audio input device associated with the computingdevice to receive ambient sounds in response to associating with themedia playback device, wherein the received ambient sounds are convertedto the plurality of input terms.
 15. The system of claim 14, wherein thehardware processor is further configured to: determine whether the audioinput device associated with the computing device is capable ofreceiving the ambient sounds; and activate an audio capturing deviceassociated with the media playback device in response to determiningthat the audio input device associated with the computing device is notcapable of receiving the ambient sounds.
 16. The system of claim 14,wherein the hardware processor is further configured to extract thetrigger term and the query from the plurality of input terms comprisesprocessing the ambient sounds using a speech recognition system.
 17. Thesystem of claim 14, wherein the hardware processor is further configuredto: request additional media playback information from the mediaapplication executing on the media playback device; and transmit thequery, the media playback information, and the additional media playbackinformation to a search system to receive the search result.
 18. Thesystem of claim 14, wherein the hardware processor is further configuredto: determine whether the search result is to be presented on thedisplay associated with the computing device; and present at least asecond portion of the search result on a display associated with themedia playback device in response to determining that the at least thesecond portion of the search result is not to be presented on thedisplay associated with the computing device.
 19. The system of claim14, wherein the hardware processor is further configured to: receiverequests from a plurality of computing devices to associate with themedia playback device that is presenting the media content; activateaudio capturing devices associated with at least a portion of theplurality of computing devices and the media playback device to receiveambient sounds from users proximate to the plurality of computingdevices and the media playback device; determine that a plurality ofqueries have been received based on the received ambient sounds, whereineach of the plurality of queries includes the trigger term and the queryrelating to the presented media content; obtain a plurality of searchresults, wherein each of the plurality of search results is responsiveto one of the plurality of queries; and cause the plurality of searchresults to be presented.
 20. The system of claim 19, wherein thehardware processor is further configured to: associate at least onesearch result of the plurality of search results with the respectivecomputing device from which the ambient sounds including the query wasreceived; and cause at least a portion of the search result to bepresented on the respective computing device.
 21. A non-transitorycomputer-readable medium containing computer executable instructionsthat, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to performmethod for providing media guidance, the method comprising: receiving aplurality of input terms; determining whether the plurality of inputterms include a query and a trigger term that corresponds to a requestto initiate the query relating to media content being presented; inresponse to determining that the trigger term has been included in theplurality of input terms, determining media playback information thatincludes timing information corresponding to a time at which the querywas received during the presentation of the media content and mediacontent identification information, wherein the timing informationcomprises a first timestamp corresponding to a time at which the triggerterm was received and a second timestamp corresponding to a time atwhich a last term in the query was received; causing a search to beperformed that includes the query, the timing information, and the mediacontent identification information, wherein the query includes at leasta portion of the plurality of input terms other than the trigger term;obtaining a search result that is responsive to the query; andpresenting at least a portion of the search result to the query on adisplay associated with the computing device.